FORT LIBERTY, N.C. – After nine months deployed to NATO’s eastern flank, the 82nd Airborne Division Headquarters returned home and uncased its colors during a ceremony at Fort Liberty, N.C., Aug. 22, 2024.
The uncasing ceremony symbolizes the unit’s return to home station and back to the mission at hand: preparing our Paratroopers and families for their hardest day of ground combat and caring for them like we do our own families.
“From December [2023] to August [2024] the 82nd Airborne Division stood watch with NATO to deter Russian aggression and assure allies and partners in the rough and tumble Black Sea region,” said Maj. Gen. Pat Work, commanding general of the 82nd Airborne Division, during the ceremony. "That's why we matter, that's why the mission matters."
In December 2023, Paratroopers assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division deployed to Mihail Kogalniceanu (MK) Air Base, Romania, in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve (OAR) and assumed command of Task Force 82 (TF 82). OAR is the U.S. contingency operation that focuses efforts to deter Russian aggression against NATO allies, reassure European communities, and reinforce cross training and security assistance activities.
Under the leadership of Maj. Gen. James “Pat” Work, TF 82 began overseeing a diverse array of units beyond their own division, including the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division; 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division; and Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Combat Aviation Brigade; and 3-227 Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade.
This collaboration illustrated not only the effectiveness of U.S. Army units working together under a unified command, but also highlighted the interoperability among nations.
TF 82 immediately coordinated Security Force Assistance (SFA) missions with partner militaries from Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Germany to connect national units to NATO units, reinforcing the bonds of alliance and ensuring enhanced collaboration.
TF 82 also worked alongside NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Italy (NRDC-Italy), NRDC-Spain, Multi National Division South East (MND-SE), Multi National Division – Center (MND-C), and Multi National Corps – South East (MNC-SE). Through joint training and exercises, TF 82 aimed to bolster interoperability among other rotational forces and create a cohesive posture to deter Russian aggression in the Black Sea region.
During Thursday’s ceremony, Work added, “It's good to be back to North Carolina, it's good to be back to business as usual. And in the 82nd Airborne Division, make no mistake, business as usual means when you're not at war, you prepare for war.”
Whether at home or abroad, the Division is continuously honing their lethality through training and exercises.
Throughout the deployment, TF 82 engaged in a series of multinational exercises designed to assess readiness, resilience, and integration among allied forces.
Notable exercises included “Allied Spirit” at Hohenfels, Germany, “Swift Response” spanning Estonia, Romania, and Moldova, and “Combined Resolve 24-2”, also at Hohenfels. Each of these events fortified the relationships and capabilities of the multinational forces and reinforced NATOs ability to overcome language barriers, improve technical processes, and enhance the lethality of our formations as a combined force.
Since their return, the 82nd Airborne Division continues to maintain their Immediate Response Force (IRF) status across the Brigade Combat Teams, with the Division Headquarters assuming IRF as a division headquarters on October 1st.
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